Cord tensioner and knot tyer



July 23, 1963 J. E. CAVENEY com: TENSIONER AND KNOT TYER 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 17, 1961 July 23, 1963 J. E. CAVENEY 3,09 70 CORD TENSIONER AND KNOT TYER Filed Oct. 17, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 (94 0 69a, 66 I 20 5 2t g 615 6 so United States Patent 3,098,670 C-ORD TENSEQNER AND KNGT TYER Jack E. tjaveney, 10132 S. Washtenaw, Chicago, 111. Fiied Get. 17, 1961, Ser. No. 145512 12 (Claims. or. ass-a7 This invention relates to the art of bundling, or the like, and particularly to an improved apparatus for bundling together a plurality of wires.

For electrically wired installations it is very common to bind together bundles of wires by wrapping them securely with string or cord, or the like, in order to group them into easily identifiable groups and facilitate their being traced and located when necessary and to generally provide a neat, pleasant appearance to the installations.

When bundling wires, it is the usual procedure to secure the string after it is looped about a bundle by tying the ends of the loop into a knot or knots. This manner of securing has been ordinarily accomplished entirely by hand and is performed on such a large scale that many workers in, for example, a single aircraft plant may be employed for this purpose. This manual procedure is quite objectionable because it is relatively slow, it is fatiguing to the workers, the tension of the string loops varies, and the constant manual tugging and manipulation of the string or cord is quite irritating to the workers hands.

It is the principal object of this invention to provide an improved apparatus for use when bundling wires or other elongated objects whereby the task is performed quicker, with uniform tension consistently, with a minimum of effort, skill and fatigue to the worker, and with a minimum of contact by the worker with the string or cord so that irritation to his hands is minimized and possibly eliminated.

The method involved consists generally of forming a double loop in a length of string or cord, encircling the end of the string around the bundle of objects to be bound, passing the end through the two loops and holding it stationary, and then drawing the double loop portion tightly against the bundle to form a tight knot and thereby secure the string around the objects.

The apparatus employed consists generally of a reel, means to releasably retain a length of string drawn off of the reel, means for forming two loops in a portion of the string drawn off from the reel, means to grasp the end of the string after it is manually encircled around the bundle of wires and then withdraw the end through the two loops and hold it stationary thereafter while other means is used to withdraw the string to tighten the string onto the bundle and draw the two loops into a tight loop against the bundle. Means is also provided for thereafter severing the bound and tied portion from the supply portion in preparation for the next binding operation.

Other objects of the invention should become apparent upon reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a side view of a bundle binding tool embodying the principles of this invention;

FIG. 2 shows a front view of the same tool;

F168. 3 to 8 show views of certain principal parts of the tool of FIGS. 1 and 2 somewhat schematically and indicate their sequential operating steps;

FIG. 9 shows a sectional view of the tool viewed along the line 9-9 of FIG. 2;

FIG. shows a sectional view along the line 1i -10 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 shows the lower portion of the sectional view of FIG. 10 except with the parts shown in different relative positions;

FIG. 12 shows a right side view of the lower portion of the tool as viewed along line 1212 of FIG. 9;

3,998,671 Patented July 23, 1963 FIG. 13 shows a sectional view along the line 13-13 of FIG. 9;

FIGS. 14 and 15 show two different views of the shuttle portion of the tool;

FIG. 16 shows a perspective view of a stop and latch mechanism actuated in conjunction with the shuttle portion shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, and

FIG. 17 shows a simplified schematic drawing of the pneumatic system used with the tool.

The embodiment of the bundle binding tool 1 shown especially in FIGS. 1, 2, 9 and 10 embodies a tubular housing 2 provided with a central smooth internal bore 3 and internally threaded portions 4 and 5 at its ends 6 and 7, respectively. These ends 6 and 7 are provided with cylindrical end pieces 8 and 9 having external threaded portions 10 and 11 engaged with the threaded portions 4 and 5. These end pieces 8 and 9 are flanged to extend radially outward and against the extreme ends 211 and 2b of the housing 2. Two O-rings 12 and 13 are provided as seals to keep the connections between the end pieces 8 and 9 and the housing 2 airtight.

Mounted on the upper surface 14 of the end piece 8 is a support 15 which is provided with two cylindrical bores 16 and 17 extending in from its bottom end to an upper region where they connect to two smaller diameter cylindrical bores 18 and 19 which extend through the upper end of the support 15. The upper ends of two loopers 20 and 21 are ordinarily aligned to be guided between bores 18 and 19. Flanged portions 22 and 23 are provided on the loopers 2t) and 21 at a region shortly below their upper ends. These flanged portions 22 and 23 are adapted to bottom against the surfaces 24 and 25 of the end piece 8. They are also adapted to be limited in their upward movement against surfaces 26 and 27 of the bores 16 and 17. Below the flanged portions 22 and 23 the loopers 20 and 21 are guided in bores 26 and 27 extending through the end piece 8.

The upper end surface 28 is in the shape of a V-shaped trough with a central cord receiving groove 29. Provided adjacent the rear end of the support 15 is an opening 31} extending through it which is used as a guide for cord pulled from the supply rail. Also, adjacent this rear portion of the support is a bracket 31 secured to it by means of one or more screws 32. The upper portion of this bracket 31 is provided with a shuttle cylinder 33 securely fastened at its forward end to the bracket 31.

The shuttle cylinder 33 houses a piston 34 which is adapted to be guided along the internal bore of the cylinder 33. The forward end of the piston 34 is provided with the shuttle 35 which is of a diameter less than that of the piston 34. A spring 36 is mounted around the shuttle 35 to react between the bracket 31 and the piston 34 in order to urge the shuttle into its retracted position as shown in FIG. 9. The rear end of the cylinder 33 is provided with an air inlet 37 which is connected to a suitable source of air pressure. The forward end of the shuttle, as viewed in FIGS. 9, 14 and 15, has a cutout 3-8 which leads to the internal portion of the shuttle. Within the internal Portion or bore of the shuttle is a gripper 39 which is normally urged forward by means of a compression spring 40 with its gripping portion 41 urged into the vicinity of the wall portion 38a of the cutout 38. The shapes of bore 41 and 38a are such that there is a confined opening 4 2 where the cord can be held. The protruding end 43 of the gripper 39 ordinarily protrudes beyond the end of the housing of the shuttle 35 where it is exposed for contact against the upper end 44a of a latch lever 44, as will hereinafter be described. The shuttle 35 is keyed by a key 35a to a longitudinal groove in the shuttle 35 to keep it from rotating.

The lower ends of the loopers are rod shaped and project through bores 45 and 46 extending through a piston 47. This piston is provided with two flanges 48 which guide it into internal bore 3 of the housing 2. The extreme lower ends of these loopers are also guided in; bores 49 and 50 of the lower end piece 9.

Each of the rod portions of the loopers are also provided with peripheral helical grooves 51 and 52 for a short portion of their length and these grooves are engaged by the opposite ends of a roller 53 journaled in a bearing 54 housed in the piston 47. Between the flanges 48 of the piston 47 is a sealing ring 55 which prevents passage of air from one side of the piston to the other.

O-rings 56 and 57 are provided in the upper end of the piston 47 and around the rod portions of the loopers 20 and 21 in order to provide a slight frictional resistance for retarding movement of the loopers longitudinally relative to the piston 47.

The lowermost portion of the rod part of the looper 21. is provided with a design which adapts it as part of a valve 58. It is provided with an annular groove 59' leading to a central bore 60 which intersects a slightly angular transverse bore 61. In the housing 2 there are two bores 62 and 63 which are used in conjunction with the groove 59 and the bores 60* and 61 for the proper passage of air through the valve 58 during the operation of the tool.

The upper ends of the loopers 20 and 21 are provided with deep troughs 64 and 65 which provide clearance during the operation of the tool for the passage of the shuttle 35, as will hereinafter be described. The wall portions of these troughs 64 and 65 are provided at their upper ends with grooves 66 which are used to engage the cord during the cord looping operation, as Will also be hereinafter described.

A housing 67 is provided at the rear of the tool and is shaped to support a spool 68 of cord 69 on a spindle 7%). The spindle 70 s adapted to be releasably engaged with the shaft 71a of an air motor 71 (FIGS. 1 and 2). When the motor 71 is operated, it causes the spindle 70 to rotate and thereby rotate the spool 68 to rewind cord onto the spool 68 during the final stages of knot tying, as will hereinafter be described. As shown particularly in FIGS. 2, 9,v land 16, there are two cord retaining rods 72 and 73 which are mounted for guided movement transversely through opening 74 in the support 15. They are positioned to be directed to intersect the cord receiving groove 29 in the support for the purpose of confining a length of cord positioned in the groove 29. At the inner end 75 of each rod is a plunger housed in the cylindrical gravity 76 of an end cover 77 attached to the upper surface 14 of the end piece 8. Plunger 75 is guided in this cavity '76 and is urged by a compression spring 78 to extend the free ends of the rods to interest the groove 29. The two rods pass transversely between two parallel cam bars 79 and 89 which are held together at one end by a round plunger 81 and at its other end by a forked shaped portion 82. The forked shaped portion 82 is pivoted on a pin 83 to the latch lever 44- Which in turn is pivoted on a shaft 84- to the wall of the end cover 77. The lower end 44b of the latch lever 44 is adapted to engage a step 44c on another lever 85 which also is pivoted to the end cover 77 on a pin '86. This lever 85 is ordinarily urged by a spring 87 into engagement of its step 440 with the end 44b of the latch lever 44. The outer end 85a of the lever 85 extends adjacent to a cutting edge 88a on a cord shear 83 projecting as an integral part of the end cover 77.

The cam bars 79 and 80 are each provided with two cams 89 which ordinarily engage flanges 90 on the cord retaining rods 72 and 73. Movement of the plunger 81 in the direction of the arrow 91 (FIG. 16), causes the cams 89 to react against the flanges 90 and retract the rods '72 and 73. Movement of the rod 81 in this direction is effected when the end 43 of the shuttle 35 contacts the upper end 44a of the latch lever 44 and moves it to the left to the position as indicated in FIG. 9 where the upper end 44a contacts a stop 92 on the end cover 77. Later on, when it is desired to cut the cold, the cord is lifted up against the end 35a of the lever and pressed against the cutting edge 88 to sever it. This movement of the lever 85 causes the lower end 44b of the latch lever 44 to become disengaged from the step Me so that the plunger 81 again retracts under the force of tension spring 93 (FIG. 16) and allows the rods 72 and 73 to extend to intersect the groove 29 under force of the compression springs 78.

On the rear side of the housing 2 are mounted two valves 94 and 95 which are actuated by means of plungers 94a and 95a respectively. These valves are all of a conventional type obtainable by purchase or can be manufactured in a conventional manner. The valve 94 is a four-way valve and the valve 95 is a two-way valve. The valve 9'4 is used for actuation of the loopers 2t and 21 while the valve 95 is used to actuate the motor '71.

A better understanding of the tool can be obtained by referring to FIGS. 3 to 8 in which the sequence of operation of the major functional parts can be explained.

In FIG. 3, the cord 6% is shown as it may be positioned initially. It is extended out from the guide opening 30 and laid down into the groove 29 of the support 15 so that it is in alignment with the groove 66 of the loopers 20 and 21 with the loopers down below the level of cord to positions as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 and all parts of the tool are positioned as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. At this time the cord retaining rods 72 and 73 are extended over the groove 29 to confine the cord 69 in the groove. The shuttle 35 is retracted. The next operation that occurs is that the loopers 20' and 2.1 are simultaneously moved up so that their grooves 66 engage the cord. The loopers are then rotated on their axes through 270 degrees which winds the cord around the upper ends of the loopers in a manner as shown in FIG. 4. The loopers are rotated in opposite directions so that the cord is twisted or wound in opposite directions around each of the loopers. After the looping is completed, there is a section 69a of each cord bridging between the groove 66 on each looper and these portions 69a bridge across the troughs 64 and 65 of the loopers. The shuttle 35 is then extended to pass through the recesses 64 and 65 of the loopers beneath these cord portions 69a. The shuttle is extended until it strikes the upper end 44a of the lat-ch lever 44 and this pivots the latch lever 44 to move the cam bars 79 and 80 (FIG. 16) to cause the cord retaining rods 72 and 73 to be retracted and thus release the cord portions previously retained under these rods 72 and 73. The positions of all parts are then as shown in FIG. 5.

Next, the leading end 6% of the cord 69 is then snapped into the region 42 of the gripping portions of the shuttle 35 after this end portion has been looped around a work piece 96 which can be a bundle of wires to be tied. The shuttle 35 is thereafter retracted to its original position, as shown in FIG. 7, which withdraws the leading end 6% of the cord beneath the cord portions 69a which are actually the apices of two cord loops 69c reversely twisted relative to each other. At this time, the loopers 20 and 21 are retracted so that their upper ends are out of the region of the two loops 69c and the relative position of the tool and the bundle 96 is indicated in FIG. 8. The top of the end cover 77 is provided with an opening 77a through which the cord 69, including its two loops 6%, are removed from the tool. The air motor is then energized to cause withdrawal of the supply end 69c of the cord to withdraw all slack in the cord and tighten the two loops 696 into a tight knot on the bundle 96. This causes the tool to be drawn up into close contact with the bundle. To prevent the knot being formed by the two loops 690 from being withdrawn with the cord, the opening 770 narrows down to a very narrow region 77b adjacent to where the leading end 6% of the cord is being held by the shuttle 35. The edges of the housing in this region 7712 can be sloped convergently upward in order to provide a proper wiping action in the region 77b to insure that the loops 69c slide along the cord 69 during the knot tying stage.

After the knot is properly tied and tightened, the end 6% of the cord held in the shuttle 25 is positioned close to the resultant knot on the bundle 96. It is then manually removed from the shuttle and the motor 71 is shut off. The tool is pulled away from. the bundle which in turn withdraws a new length of cord from the supply spool while still attached to the knot portion. The motor 71 is deliberately provided with frictional drag to permit easy control of cord withdrawal. The tool is manipulated so that the cord is laid down in the groove 29 and extended down to the region of the lever 85. A slight proper movement then hooks the cord against the lever end 85a and up against the cutter portion 88 to be severed along the cutting edge 88a. This severs the looped and tied portion of the cord on the bundle from the supply portion. Simultaneously with this movement of the arm end 85a, the arm 85 is released from its engagement with the lower end 44b of the latch lever 44 to allow the cord retaining rods to extend and confine the cord to its position .as shown in FIG. 3 in preparation for a new cycle of operation. The cycle can then be repeated as many times as required in order to place a new loop of cord around the bundle similar to loop 97 shown in FIG. 8.

With the functional operation of the machine having been described with respect to FIGS. 3 to 8, the entire operation of the tool can be understood wtih relation to the air means used for powering it by reference to FIG. 17. In FIG. 17 there is a source of air pressure 98 which can be any conventional sounce, such as an air reservoir supplied with pressure by means of an air pump. It is provided with a conduit 99 leading to the atmosphere and a conduit 100 which is the pressurized air supply line. The conduit 100 is connected to a conduit 101 leading to two conduits 102 and 103'. Conduit 102 leads into the four-way valve 94 while conduit 103 leads into the two-way valve 95. Another conduit 104 leads from conduit 100 to a .port 105 of valve 58. The other side of the valve 58 has a port 106 leading to a conduit 107 which is connected to a port 1&8 of the cylinder housing the shuttle 35. The cylinder 33 has a conduit 10 9 at its opposite end leading to the atmosphere.

Four-way valve 94 has a conduit 110 leading to the atmosphere and two conduits 111 and 112 leading to the opposite ends of cylinder housing 2 of the tool. The valve 95 has another conduit 113 leading to the motor 71 which has an exhaust conduit 114 leading to the atmosphere.

In operation, with the parts as shown in FIGS. 3, 9 and 10, the shutle 35 is retracted, the piston 47 is retracted, and the air motor 71 is inoperative. Initially, air valve 94 is operated to connect high pressure from the pump source 98 through conduits 101, #102, the valve 94 and conduit 112 into the cylinder housing 2 to cause the piston '47 to move upward as viewed in FIGS. 9, l and 17. Sufficient friction is provided by means of the O-rings 56 and 57 so that the initial movement of this cylinder 47 upward causes no initial relative movement between piston 47 and the lower rod portions of the loopers 20 and 21. During this time the loopers are also raised with the piston 47 to positions indicated at 115 in FIG. 9. This position is the height of movement of the loopers determined when their flanges 22 and 23 strike the surfaces 26 and 27 in the bores '16 and 17'. When stopped by these surfaces 26 and 27, the loopers 20 and 21 begin to rotate as the piston 47 continues to move upwardly. This is caused by the roller 53 which engages the helical grooves 51 and 52 on the loopers. The helical grooves 51 and 52 are of sufficient length and angularity that they rotate the loopers in opposite directions through 270 degrees to position them in the relative positions shown in FIG. 4. At this time the two loops 690 are formed.

During the final movement of the looper 21, its lower rod end is moved vertically and rotated from its position as shown in FIGS. 9 and 12 to its position as shown in FIG. 11. This changes the connection to port 106 from exhaust through groove 59, bore 60 and bore 61 to connect it to port 105 through bore 61. In effect, this connects high pressure air from conduit 104 through ports 105 and 106 to conduit 107 and into the shuttle cylinder 33 through port 108. This causes the shuttle 35 to extend to the position indicated in FIG. 5 as it passes beneath the cord portions 69a which are the apices of the two loops 690. At the end of this movement of the shuttle 35, it strikes the upper end 44a of the latch lever 44, as previously explained, and causes the cord retaining rods 72 and 73 to be cammed clear of the cord positioned in the groove 29 of the support 15 (FIG. 10).

After the cord end 6% is looped around the bundle 96 and inserted into the gripping region 42 of the shuttle 35, the valve 94 is actuated in a reverse manner than originally so that air under pressure from conduit 102 is applied through conduit 111 to the upper end of the cylinder housing 2 through port 1 11a to cause reverse movement :of the piston 47 to retract the loopers 20 and 21. Since there is a certain amount of friction because of the -O-rings 56 and 57, the piston 47 and the loopers 20 and 21 move together until the shoulders 22 and 23 strike the surfaces 24 and 25 of the end piece 8. At this time, the lower rod portion of the looper 21 in the vicinity of the valve 58 is returned to its original poistion as shown in FIGS. 9 and 12. In this position, conduit 106 is again exhausted to the atmosphere through bore 61 which then leads to the atmosphere by way of the lower end of the bore 50. When this occurs, the spring 36 within the shuttle cylinder 33 causes the shuttle 35- to retract to its original position as shown in FIGS. 7 and 9.

With the shuttle retracted clear of the loops 69c and the cord retaining rods 72 and 73 clear of the cord 69, the valve 95 is actuated to cause high pressure from cond-uit 103 to be applied to the air motor 71 to cause retraction of the supply end 69d of the cord. This draws the tool up against the bundle 96 to complete the tightening of a knot in the cord.

It should be mentioned that when the piston 47 retracts, it causes reverse rotation of the loopers 20 and 21 because of the engagement of the roller 53 with the helical grooves 51 and 52 in a manner reverse of that occurring during the time that the piston 47 is extended.

After the knot is completed, the leading end 6% of the cord is removed from the shuttle and the cord is withdrawn from the spool 68 by pulling the tool away from the bundle 96. The cord is then laid down into the groove 29 of the support 15 and brought around against the end a of the lever 85 and up against the cutting edge 88a of the shear 88 to sever the looped and not knotted portion 97 from the supply end of the cord 69. The pressure of the cord against the lever end 85a allows release of the latch lever 44 to return the cord retaining rods 72 and 73 to their position across the groove 29 to retain the cord therein in preparation for the next complete operating cycle.

Althoughthe apparatus has been described, by way of example, as causing two loops 69c of cord or binder which are for-med by twisting the cord in opposite directions through 2 70' degrees of rotation, it should be understood that the loops can number more than two and can be twisted in the same or opposite directions and at different amounts of rotation than 270 degrees. In fact, the tool might be adapted with only one looper so that only a single loop 690 of cord is formed. In order to provide these variations, the number of loopers can be changed and the helical gnooves 51 and 52 can be redesigned to provide the proper rotation of the loopers.

Although only a single embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, it should be clearly understood that the invention can be made in many different ways without departing from the true scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A tool for securing a binding cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a housing provided with a cord receiving passage into which a length of cord drawn oif from a cord supply can be extended longitudinally, means intersecting said passage for releasably retaining the cord in the passage, a looper positioned adjacent the passage and having a notch aligned with the direction of the length of cord, means for causing said looper to be moved toward the cord positioned in the passage with the notch engaging the cord and thereafter to be twisted through a large angle to twist the cord into a cord loop, a shuttle on the housing, and operating means to cause the shuttle to be extended in the direction of the passage and through the loop, and provided with a cord gripper movable to grip the free end of the cord after it is encircled about the bundle to be secured, said operating means thereafter causing said shuttle to be retracted to carry the free cord end through the cord loop to a holding position where it can be held stationary relative to the tool while the supply end of the cord is withdrawn to shrink the cord around the bundle and secure the cord loop and the free cord end into a tight knot.

2. The combination in a tool for securing a binder cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a housing having a passage where a length of cord extending from a supply of cord can be held in a longitudinal direction, a pair of loopers adjacent said passage, and operating means for causing said loopers to form a pair of loops in an intermediate portion of the length of cord, a shuttle on the housing, and a shuttle operating means to cause the shuttle to pull one end of the cord length through the two loops formed by the loopers after the one end has been encircled about the bundle, whereby the other end of the cord can be withdrawn to tighten the cord onto the bundle and tighten the two loops into a knot, and shear means on said housing against which the cord can be urged for shearing the length of cord from the supply of cord.

3. The combination in a tool for securing a binder cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a housing having a passage where a length of cord can be held in a longitudinal direction, a plurality of loopers adjacent said passage and operating means for causing said loopers to form a plurality of loops in an intermediate portion of the length of cord, a shuttle on the housing, and a shuttle operating means to cause the shuttle to pull one end of the cord length through the loops formed by the looper after the one end has been encircled about the bundle.

4. The combination in a tool for securing a binder cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a housing having a passage where a length of cord can be extended in a longitudinal direction, cord retaining means intersecting said passage for releasably retaining the cord in said passage, a looper adjacent the passage movable for forming a loop in an intermediate portion of the length of cord, a shuttle on the housing, and a shuttle operating means to cause the shuttle to be extended through the loop and then withdrawn for pulling one end of the cord length through the loop formed by the looper after the one end has been encircled about the bundle, whereby the other end of the cord can be withdrawn to tighten the cord onto the bundle and tighten the loop into a knot against the bundle, said cord retaining means biased to retain the cord in said passage, a cam means on said housing in the path of the cord retaining means and said shuttle so that extension of the shuttle causes release of the cord retaining means from retaining the cord.

5. The combination in a tool defined by claim 3 char- 8 acterized by, said loopers forming the loops in the cord by first extending to engage the cord and then rotating 011 their axes, said loopers being provided with this movement by means of rod portions thereon extending through a piston which is frictionally engaged with the rod portions to cause the loopers to be extended for engagement with the cord during initial longitudinal movement of the piston, stop means on the loopers for limiting the amount the loopers can be extended, and which rod portions are provided with helical grooves engaged by piston projections stationary relative to the piston so that upon continued longitudinal movement of the piston after the rod portions have been extended to their limit the helical grooves are guided by the projections to cause the loopers to rotate on their axes and cause the loops to be formed.

6. The combination defined by claim 1 characterized by, fluid driving means for moving said looper toward the cord positioned in the passage and for twisting the looper to twist the cord into a cord loop, and fluid driving means for extending said shuttle, said looper having a valve portion which allows fluid to be directed to the driving means for the shuttle only after the looper has been moved toward the cord positioned in the passage.

7. A tool for securing a binding cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a housing provided with a cord receiving passage into which a length of cord drawn off from a cord supply can be extended longitudinally, cord retaining means intersecting said passage for releasably reta-ining the cord in the passage, a plurality of loopers positioned adjacent the passage and each having a notch aligned with the direction of the length of cord, means for causing said loopers to be moved toward the cord positioned in the passage with their notches engaging the cord and thereafter each to be twisted through a large angle to twist the cord into a plurality of loops, a shuttle :on the housing, and a shuttle operating means to cause the shuttle to be extended in the direction of the passage and through the loop and provided with a cord gripper movable to grip the free end of the cord after it is encircled about the bundle to be secured, said operating means thereafter causing said shuttle to be retracted to carry the free cord end through the cord loops to holding position where it can be held stationary relative to the tool while the supply end of the cord is withdrawn to shrink the cord around the bundle and secure the cord loops and the free cord end into a tight knot, said cord retaining means biased to retain the cord in said passage, a cam means on said housing in the path of the cord retaining means and said shuttle so that extension of the shuttle causes release of the cord retaining means from retaining the cord.

8. A tool for securing a binding cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a housing provided with a cord receiving passage into which a length of cord drawn off from a cord supply can be extended longitudinally, cord retaining means intersecting said passage for releasably retaining the cord in the passage, a plurality of loopers positioned adjacentthe passage and each having a notch aligned with the direction of the length of cord, means for causing said loopers to be moved toward the cord positioned in the passage with their notches engaging the cord and thereafter each to be twisted through a large angle to twist the cord into a plurality of loops, a shuttle on the housing, and a shuttle operating means to cause the shuttle to be extended in the direction of the passage and through the loop and provided with a cord gripper movable to the grip the free end of the cord after it is encircled about the bundle to be secured, said operating means thereafter causing. said shuttle to be retracted to carry the free cord end through the cord loops to a holding position where it can be held stationary relative to the tool while the supply end of the cord is withdrawn to shrink the cord around the bundle and secure the cord loops and the free cord end into a tight knot,

said cord retaining means biased to retain the cord in said passage, a cam means on housing in the path of the cord retaining means and said shuttle so that extension of the shuttle causes release of the cord retaining means from retaining the cord, said housing also being provided with a cord shear against which the cord can be urged for shearing the length of cord encircled around the bundle from the cord supply.

9. A tool for securing a binding cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a housing provided with a cord receiving passage into which a length of cord drawn off from a cord supply can be extended longitudinally, cord retaining means intersecting said passage for releasably retaining the cord in the passage, a plurality of loopers positioned adjacent the passage and each having a notch aligned with the direction of the length of cord, means for causing said loopers to be moved toward the cord positioned in the passage with their notches engaging the cord and thereafter each to be twisted through a large angle to twist the cord into a plurality of loops, a shuttle on the housing, and a shuttle operating means to cause the shuttle to be extended in the direction of the passage and through the loop and provided with a cord gripper movable to grip the free end of the cord after it is encircled about the bundle to be secured, said operating means thereafter causing said shuttle to be retracted to carry the free cord end through the cord loops to a holding position where it can be held stationary relative to the tool While the'supply end of the cord is withdrawn to shrink the cord around the bundle and secure the cord loops and the free cord end into a tight knot, said cord retaining means biased to retain the cord in said passage, a cam means on said housing in the path of the cord retaining means and said shuttle so that extension of the shuttle causes release of the cord retaining means from retaining the cord, said housing also being provided with a cord shear against which the cord can be urged for shearing the length of cord encircled around the bundle from the cord supply, said cord shear being provided with a latch, a latch lever mounted on the housing aligned to be engaged by said cam means and arranged to engage the latch upon said actuation of the latch lever by the shuttle and thereby allow the latch to keep the cord retaining means out of cord retaining position so long as the latch lever is engaged with said latch, said latch being so aligned with said shear that movement of the cord against the shear engages said latch to release the latch lever from it and allow the cord retaining means to move into cord retaining position.

10. The combintion in a tool for securing a binder cord around a bundle of one or more objects comprising, a passage where a length of cord can be held in a longitudinal direction, a looper adjacent said passage for forming a loop in an intermediate portion of the length of cord, and a shuttle for pulling one end of the cord length through the loop formed by the looper after the one end has been encircled about the bundle, s aid looper forming the loop in the cord by first extending to engage the cord and then rotating on its axis, said looper being provided with this movement by means of a rod portion thereon extending through a piston which is frictionally engaged with the rod portion to cause the looper to be extended for engagement with the cord during initial longitudinal movement of the piston, and stop means on the looper for limiting the amount the looper can be extended which rod portion is provided with a helical groove engaged by a piston projection stationary relative to the piston so that upon continued longitudinal movement of the piston after the rod portion has been extended to its limit the helical groove is guided by the projection to cause the looper to rotate on its axis and cause the loop to be formed.

11. The combination in a tool tfor securing a binder oord around one or more objects comprising, a housing provided with a cord receiving passage into which a length 10 of cord drawn olf from a cord supply can be extended longitudinally, cord retainer means for releasably retaining the cord in the passage, a pair of loopers positioned adjacent the passage and having notches initially aligned with the direction of the length of oord, said loopers being adapted to be moved toward the cord positioned in the passage with the notches engaging the cord and thereafter to be rotated in. opposite directions to twist the cord into two adjacent cord loops, a shuttle adapted to be extended in the direction of the passage and through the loop, said shuttle being provided with a cord gripper adapted to grip the free end of the cord after it is encircled about the bundle to be secured and thereafter retracted to carry the tree cord end through both of the cord loops to a holding position where it can be held stationary relative to the tool while the supply end of the cord is withdrawn to shrink the cord around the bulldle and secure the cord loops and the free cord end into a tight knot, said loopers being provided with their to tation for twisting the loops by means ot rod portions thereon extending through a piston which is firiotionally engaged with the rod portions to cause the loopers to be extended tior engagement with the cord during initial longitudinal movement of the piston, stop means on the ioopers for limiting the amount the loopers can be extended, and which rod portions are provided with helical grooves engaged by piston projections stationary relative to the piston so that upon continued longitudinal movement of the piston after the rod portions have been extended to their limit the helical grooves are guided by the projections to cause the loopers to rotate on th ir axes and cause the loops to be formed, said cord retaining means biased to retain the cord in said passage, a cam means on sm'd housing in the path of the cord retaining means and said shuttle so that extension of the shuttle causes release of the cord retaining means from retaining the cord.

12. The combination in a tool for securing a binder cord around one or more objects comprising, a housing provided with a cord receiving passage into which a length of cord drawn oif trom a cord supply can be extended longitudinally, cord retainer means for releasably retaining the cord in the passage, a pair of loopers positioned adjacent the passage and having notches initially aligned with the direction of the length of cord, said loopers being adapted to be moved toward the cord positioned in the passage with the notches engaging the cord and thereafter to be rotated in opposite directions to twist the cord into two adjacent cord loops, a shuttle adapted to be extended in the direction of the passage and through the loop, said shuttle being provided with a cord gripper adapted to grip the free end of the cord after it is enoircled about the bundle to be secured and thereafter retracted to carry the free cord end through both of the cord loops to a holding position where it can be held stationary relative to the tool while the supply end of the cor-d is withdrawn to shrink the cord around the bundle and secure the cord loops and the free oord end into a tight knot, said loropers being provided with their rotation tor twisting the loops by means of rod portions thereon extending through a piston which is triotionally engaged with the rod portions to cause the loopers to be extended for engagement with the cord during initial longitudinal movement of the piston, stop means on the loopers for limiting the amount the loopers can be extended, and Which rod portions are provided with helical grooves engaged by piston projections stationary relative to the piston so that upon continued longitudinal movement of the piston after the rod portions have been extended to their limit the helical grooves are guided by the projections to cause the loopers to rotate on their axes and cause the loops to be formed, said cord retaining means biased to retain the cord in said passage, a cam means on said housing in the path of the cord retaining means and said shuttle so that extension of the 1 I shuttle causes release of the cord retaining means from retaining the cord, said housing also being provided with a cordwshear against which the cord can be urged ifoif shearing the length of cord encircled around the bundle from the cord supply, said cord shear being provided with *a latch, a latch lever engaged by said cam means and arranged to engage the latch upon said actuation of the latch lever by the shuttle and thereby allow the latch to keep the cord retaining means [out of cord retaining position so long as the latch lever is engaged with said 10 latch, said latch being so aligned with said shear that movement of the cord against the shear engages said latch to release the latch lever from it and allow the cord retaining means to move into cord retaining position.

Posltley Aug. 1, 1899 Terwilleger Nov. 3, 1903 

1. A TOOL FOR SECURING A BINDING CORD AROUND A BUNDLE OF ONE OR MORE OBJECTS COMPRISING, A HOUSING PROVIDED WITH A CORD RECEIVING PASSAGE INTO WHICH A LENGTH OF CORD DRAWN OFF FROM A CORD SUPPLY CAN BE EXTENDED LONGITUDINALLY, MEANS INTERSECTING SAID PASSAGE FOR RELEASABLY RETAINING THE CORD IN THE PASSAGE, A LOOPER POSITIONED ADJACENT THE PASSAGE AND HAVING A NOTCH ALIGNED WITH THE DIRECTION OF THE LENGTH OF CORD, MEANS FOR CAUSING SAID LOOPER TO BE MOVED TOWARD THE CORD POSITIONED IN THE PASSAGE WITH THE NOTCH ENGAGING THE CORD AND THEREAFTER TO BE TWISTED THROUGH A LARGE ANGLE TO TWIST THE CORD INTO A CORD LOOP, A SHUTTLE ON THE HOUSING, AND OPERATING MEANS TO CAUSE THE SHUTTLE TO BE EXTENDED IN THE DIRECTION OF THE PASSAGE AND THROUGH THE LOOP, AND PROVIDED WITH A CORD GRIPPER MOVABLE TO GRIP THE FREE END OF THE CORD AFTER IT IS ENCIRCLED ABOUT THE BUNDLE TO BE SECURED, SAID OPERATING MEANS THEREAFTER CAUSING SAID SHUTTLE TO BE RETRACTED TO CARRY THE FREE CORD END THROUGH THE CORD LOOP TO A HOLDING POSITION WHERE IT CAN BE HELD STATIONARY RELATIVE TO THE TOOL WHILE THE SUPPLY END OF THE CORD IS WITHDRAWN TO SHRINK THE CORD AROUND THE BUNDLE AND SECURE THE CORD LOOP AND THE FREE CORD END INTO A TIGHT KNOT. 